Sight
by dmaeq
Summary: After vandalizing a car, Jake Puckerman is sentenced to community service. At a group home, he meets a blind girl named Marley Rose. AU
1. Chapter 1

Sight

Jake Puckerman entered the office of his probation officer Will Schuester. The 16 year old boy had been recently put on probation for auto vandalism. He was angry and bitter. Luckily, his mother Tanisha and his attorney managed to get some of the charges dropped and he was sentenced to probation and community service.

Will was looking over paper work and files. Jake was annoyed with the wait.

"I made some calls to the Lima Disability Group Home and they are willing to have you serve your community service hours over there. The group home houses disabled children and teenagers. My wife Emma works there as a counselor. You will be helping out the staff members with various duties which will mostly be maintenance and occasionally helping some of the residents. You will be required to sign an honor code in which you promise not to vandalize or steal anything from the home." Will said.

"Look I won't steal or trash anything. I want get my community service over with." Jake said with a tone of anger.

"I understand son. You start tomorrow at 4 pm." Will said.

* * *

The next day, Jake was picked up from school by his mother Tanisha. The woman loved her son dearly and was heartbroken over some of his actions in the past few months.

"Jacob, I want you to do your best with your community service. I want you to look at everything as a second chance to right wrongs and to mature." Tanisha said.

The woman then pulled up to the group home which was a large house with playground equipment in the front yard. A white van was parked near that read "Lima Group Home."

A ramp lead up to the front door.

The mother and son got out of their car and went up to the front door and knocked.

A red headed woman answered the door and said, "Well, hello you must be Jake Puckerman. I'm Emma Schuester"

Jake said, "That's me."

Tanisha spoke up, "I'm his mother Tanisha."

"Will told me about you two. Please come in." Emma said.

The two followed Emma and noticed a few children and teens in wheelchairs wheeling around. Jake recognized a boy from his school. The boy wore glasses and sweater vests all the time.

Emma led the mother and son into a small office.

They all sat at her desk.

"Ok Jake, like Will said you will be helping mostly with maintenance and some of the cleaning." Emma said.

Tanisha asked, "Can you tell me more about this facility?"

Emma responded, "We opened five years ago. Our residents are wards of the state. Most of them were abandoned by their parents and a couple are orphans. All of residents were placed here because of their disabilities."

Tanisha looked at Jake and said, "Jake I'm going to head out to work the night shift. You do your duties here and stay out of trouble."

"I will Mom." Jake said.

Tanisha said bye to Jake and Emma.

* * *

Emma lead Jake around the house and introduced him to some of the residents. They approached the wheelchair bound teenage boy wearing a sweater vest.

"Jake, this is Artie Abrams." Emma said.

"I have seen him from McKinley." Jake said.

Artie said, "Hi" before wheeling away.

Jake figured that Artie feared him.

Emma finally lead Jake to the garage.

"Your first duties will be to clean one of the vans and once you are done take the cleaning supplies into the storage room in the house." Emma said.

She then left the boy to clean the van. The boy spent the next two hours cleaning the van. He then gathered up the supplies to take them back to the storage room. He noticed one of the living rooms was filled with children and teens watching TV. He then heard the sound of a piano playing and a sweet voice singing.

He dropped the supplies off the storage room and then walked around to find the source of the piano and singing.

In a recreation room, he say a teenage girl with light brown hair playing the piano and singing "A Thousand Years." Jake recognized the song from one of the Twilight movies which he had watched with his little cousin Jenny, a few months before.

He watched the girl at the piano. She had a pretty face, but she she was singing with her eyes closed. After a minute, she stopped playing.

"Who is there?" She asked.

Jake then noticed a long white cane propped up on the side of the piano.

"I'm Jake. I'm doing community service here." He said.

"Oh you must be the guy Emma told us about earlier today." The girl said.

She slide out from the piano bench stood up and took her cane and move it from side to side.

Jake got closer to her and he saw her pretty blue eyes which had a set gaze which was common with blind people.

"Can you put your hand out, I would like to shake it to greet you. I'm Marley Rose." She said.

Jake held out his hand and somehow Marley sensed it and took hold of it shaking it.

Marley asked, "So what are your duties here?"

"Cleaning and some maintenance work. I just cleaned one of the vans." Jake said.

"Sounds fun." Marley teased.

Jake wondered why the girl was blind, but he decided not to ask.

"You sound young Jake. How old are you?"

"I'm 16. How old are you and do you go to school?" Jake asked.

"I'm 16 too and I'm homeschooled here by Emma and Santana. I used to go to the blind school in Columbus. But I was moved here to be closer to my grandmother. She lives in a nursing home here in Lima." Marley said.

"What about your parents?" Jake asked.

"They died when I was 9." She said.

"I'm so sorry."

"Thank you." Marley said.

"Would you like to come outside with me?" She then asked.

"Umm sure." Jake

He watched as she tapped her cane back and forth as she walked up to a door leading to the back yard. She opened it and lead him out.

"It's nice out today. I feel it. I like the sound of the birds." She said.

"Yeah, I'm glad winter is over. That is the worst season ever." Jake said.

"Winter can be beautiful. Yeah it is cold, but during the winter I like feel of the snow. I like making snow angels and with some help from the others here I can make snowmen." Marley smiled.

Jake began to wonder how it would be to be blind and not see anything.

Just then, the back door opened and Emma called out, "It's time for dinner Marley."

Marley said, "I gotta go eat. It was nice talking to Jake."

* * *

Jake finished up a couple of other chores Emma assigned to him and he headed home. He hated being home alone, but he knew Tanisha had to work nights sometimes. He did his homework and then thought back to the group home and Marley.

He was attracted to the girl. But he was unsure of her. She was disabled and living at a group home. A relationship would be difficult. He decided that he would continue being nice to the girl whenever he saw her at the group home.

The next morning, he came into the kitchen and saw his mother making breakfast.

"How did it go at the group home?" His mother asked.

"It went ok. I just did some cleaning." Jake said.

"Thats good. Jake I hope you treat those residents with respect. I don't want you to mock them or anything." Tanisha said.

"I wont. Besides only one of them talked to me yesterday." Jake said.

* * *

The school day went by and Jake took a bus to the group home. He went inside and told Emma that he arrived. She then told that his chores involved helping two of the residents sand and varnish a small ramp. He went into the garage and saw Artie there with another boy who didn't look disabled. Jake recognized the other boy as another student from McKinley.

"Hi Jake." Artie said.

"Hi." Jake responded.

Artie said, "This is Ryder Lynn. He lives here too."

Ryder said, "Hi. Let me guess Will from the juvie place sent you here."

"Yeah, he did." Jake said.

"I hope you don't pull crap like the others from juvie probation have done here." Ryder said with a hostile tone.

"I'm here to do my community service. I don't want to make trouble." Jake said.

Artie then said, "Ok let's get to work on this ramp.

For the next hour, the three boys sanded the ramp.

Artie went into the house to change out of sawdust covered clothes.

Ryder began spreading varnish with a brush on the ramp.

Jake decided to break the ice and said, "Ryder can I ask why you live here?"

Ryder walked over to him and pulled up his left pant leg which revealed that had a prosthetic leg.

Jake starred at the prosthetic a bit.

"I didn't know that your leg is fake." He said.

"A lot of people don't notice it. When I was 12, I got into an accident." Ryder said.

"I'm sorry about." Jake said.

Ryder just nodded.

Artie returned and then helped the other two varnish and sand the ramp.

After they finished up, they went to the backyard where some of the residents were playing games. Jake saw Marley sitting by herself at a table, he noticed she had a book in front of her and she was gliding her hands across the Braille pages.

He went over to her and said, "Hi it's me Jake."

A smiled formed on her face and she said, "Hi, you came back."

"Yeah" He said.

"I was just reading a book. I finally got a copy of Catching Fire on Braille. Artie and Ryder read The Hunger Games to me a few months back." Marley said.

"Do you like reading?" She asked.

"Umm." Jake said.

"I take that as a no." Marley responded.

Jake said, "I wish I liked reading more. But maybe I can read to you sometime."

"That would be nice. I like hearing different people read to me." Marley said.

Ryder then walked up to the table and said, "Hi Marley. How do you like book?"

"Hey Ryder, I like it a lot. It is kind of different reading the second book in Braille after you and Artie read the first one to me." She said.

'Well, about you come inside and I'll read a couple of chapters from my print copy to you." Ryder said.

"That would be nice. I just finished up chapter four." She said.

Ryder walked over to Marley's side and helped her up. She locked her arm with his and folded up her cane.

"It was nice talking to you again Jake. It is starting to get noisy out here and I like when Ryder reads to me in a quieter place." Marley said.

"Ok I understand." Jake said trying to hide his disappointment.

He watched as Ryder lead Marley into the house.


	2. Chapter 2

Sight Chapter 2

The next couple of days, Jake wasn't scheduled for community service. He thought about Marley and he decided to get into reading as a way of impressing her. He checked out a few books from the school library and he also checked out a Braille alphabet chart. He would close his eyes and run his fingers over the raised dots.

He had a scheduled meeting with Will before he returned to community service, the next day which was a Saturday.

"My wife gave you good compliments on your first two days of community service. She said you completed tasks as told and you have been friendly to some of the residents. I will do a write up for your file. Keep up the good work Jake." Will said.

Jake just nodded and then asked, "I know I have a community service schedule, but would it be ok if I went over to the group home extra days to see if they need help with stuff?"

"If you feel up to spending extra time helping out over there. I don't see anything wrong with it. I'll tell Emma later on today." Will said.

* * *

The next morning Jake slept in. He liked the freedom of weekends. He wasn't too bothered by the fact that he had community service, seeing Marley made it worth it.

He went into the kitchen and cooked breakfast for his mother. He called her down.

She smiled, "Sweetie, I'm surprised you are doing this and you seem to be in a good mood."

"It's the weekend and I figured you deserve a breakfast made by me." He said.

"I guess I'm proven wrong at times. I thought you be mad because you have community service today." Tanisha said.

"I'm not bothered by community service. Like you said I have right wrongs." Jake said.

Tanisha took a sip of her coffee before she said, "I'll give you a lift to the home later on."

* * *

Tanisha pulled up the car near the home. Jake saw Marley on the porch of the house sitting with a dark haired woman.

"I'll be here at 3 to pick you up." Tanisha said.

"Ok, I'll see you then." Jake said.

He walked up the ramp to the porch and said, "Hey Marley."

Marley responded, "Hi Jake. I'm recognizing your voice more."

She then said, "This is Santana Lopez. She is my tutor and one of the assistants here."

Santana said, "Hello Jake. I've heard about you from some of the residents and Emma."

"Yeah, I've been enjoying my community service here. I better go report to Emma." Jake said.

He went into Emma's office and a received a list of tasks.

He cleaned the bathrooms and he also washed one of the vans. During break time, he looked around for Marley and saw her and Santana sitting at the piano. He saw Santana give Marley sheet music which had Braille on it.

He watched closely as she ran her fingers over it and smiled. He wondered if she was learning a new song.

He saw Santana get up from the piano bench and go outside.

Jake walked up to Marley and said, "Are you learning a new song?"

"I am. Santana prints up lyric sheets and then she runs them through a Braille machine. She got me the lyrics to Unchained Melody." Marley said.

"Do you ever leave here?" Jake asked.

"I do. I visit my grandmother on Sundays and Tuesdays. Sometimes I go out with the others to the mall, movies, and other places." She responded.

"Maybe this is too much, but would you like to come over to my house tonight for dinner? My mom is coming later to pick me up."

Marley smiled and said, "I would like that, if it would be ok with your mom and we would have to get it cleared with Emma.

"I'll go ask her." Marley said.

Marley with her cane in hand went down Emma's office. She had memorized the lay out of the group home in the past year.

She put her hand out and felt that the door was closed. She knocked on it and heard Emma's voice say "Come in."

"Marley, sweetheart do you need help with anything?" Emma asked.

"Umm, Jake invited me over to dinner at his house. I know I need to get it cleared with you."

The red head responded, "Well, I'll give Will a call and see what he thinks."

Marley left the office and went back to the piano.

In the office, Emma dialed Will's number.

"Hi Will, it's me Emma. Jake invited Marley to dinner at his house. Do you think this is a good idea? I don't think Jake is a horrible kid, but I worry about Marley." She said into the phone.

"I think it will be ok. Emma. Jake doesn't have history of violence towards other people. His mother will likely be there. Don't worry too much. You have let some of your residents interact with people from the community." Will said.

"Ok. I know what you are saying Will. But I worry about these kids and I don't like seeing them get hurt." Emma said.

A few minutes later, Emma went to Marley and Jake that she was going to allow Marley to go over to Jake and she said that she would be the one picking up Marley later on.

* * *

Later on, Marley and Jake were on the porch awaiting his mother. Jake had tried calling his mom but didn't get an answer. He didn't think his mother would be upset at him inviting Marley over.

"So where is Artie and Ryder? I haven't seen them around today." Jake asked.

"They went to a weekend retreat in Westerville. Every few months, Easter Seals takes some of us to weekend retreats. I don't go to them because the retreats aren't really set up for blind people." Marley said.

Jake asked, "Do you miss the blind school?"

"I do. But I like it here in Lima. I get to visit my grandmother and I've made friends here and I like the homeschooling set up." Marley said.

She then asked, "Jake can you describe yourself to me?"

"Umm ok, I'm half white and half black. My mom's skin color is like a dark chocolate. I'm a bit lighter than her. I keep my hair a bit short and it is a bit soft." He said.

Marley then got closer to Jake and placed her hands on his face. "Do you mind, if I feel your face? The texture might give me a better idea of what you look like?"

Jake responded, "Ok."

She moved her hand slowly around his face. She glided her finger over his cheekbones and she rubber her thumbs over his eyebrows.

She took her hands away.

Jake had enjoyed how she felt his face. Her hands with soft.

A few minutes later, Tansies' car pulled up and Jake watched as his mom got out and came on to the porch.

"Are you ready to go Jake?"

She then saw the blind girl sitting on the porch swing with a white cane in her hand.

"Mom, I hope you don't mind, but invited Marley here for dinner?" Jake said.

Tanisha was a bit shocked at her son's actions.


	3. Chapter 3

Sight Chapter 4

Tanisha stayed quiet for a couple of minutes and said, "Yeah, sure it is fine, it never hurts to have an extra person eat with us."

Jake helped Marley up and guided her closer to Tanisha.

Marley held out her right hand and said, "My name is Marley Rose and Jake has been really nice to me. You sound very kind."

"I'm Tanisha." The mother responded as she shook the girl's hand.

Emma then came out to the porch, "Hello Tanisha, I will pick up Marley in a couple of hours. If something comes up feel free to call here."

"We will."

Jake then lead Marley down the porch and guided her into the backseat of the car. He decided to seat with her in the back because he sensed her nervousness. After ten minutes they arrived at the house.

Jake again lead Marley around. He told her about steps and he guided her into the dining room of his house.

Tanisha said, "Jake can you make a salad and I'll call for a pizza."

"Sure mom."

"I'll help" Marley responded.

"There is no need for that, sweetie you are a guest here." Tanisha said.

"It's ok, I want to help. I learned how to cook and doing things at the blind school. But I haven't done any cooking in awhile since I came to Lima." Marley said.

Tanisha smiled and said, Let's me guide you to the kitchen island."

Jake pulled out vegetables from the refrigerator and Tanisha pulled out a cutting board and knives.

She handed Marley a tomato. The young woman felt the tomato and then felt the knife. She started cutting it. Jake and Tanisha were a bit amazed that she was doing well.

After 15 minutes the salad was made. The pizza wouldn't be delivered for another twenty minutes.

"About we go into the living room and eat there and watch some TV?" Tanisha said.

Jake lead Marley again.

Tanisha turned on the TV onto a basketball game. She then felt bad knowing Marley wouldn't be seeing anything.

"Marley are ok with me and Jake watching a basketball game.?" She asked.

"Its ok. I kind of remember sporting events before I went blind and people have described them to me." Marley said.

Jake decided to get the courage and ask about the blindness.

"How did you go blind?"

Marley took a breath and said, "I went blind because of a brain tumor that caused damage to my corneas. I was 7 at the time"

Jake stayed silent thinking about how it would be to become blind after having vision.

Tanisha said, "I'm so sorry about that."

Marley then said, "After I lost my sight, I started going to blind schools and adapting. My goals are to live on my own someday and become a teacher. I want to be music and voice teacher. "

Tanisha smiled and placed her hand on Marley's. Marley smiled as she felt that.

"It is good that you have goals. Maybe you can rub off on Jake."

Jake then said, "Marley I checked out a few books from the library."

"What did you check out?" She asked.

"I checked out the Hunger Games books and some book called Divergent." Jake said.

"I heard about the Divergent series, I will probably get a braille copy in the next few months."

"About I read the beginning of it to you after we eat?" He asked.

"That would be nice."

* * *

The pizza arrived and the three ate dinner and chatted. After dinner, Jake led Marley into his mom's pulled out the book from his backpack.

Jake started reading the first chapter. He wasn't used to reading aloud to someone else and he stumbled in places. He felt embarrassed, but he saw that Marley was always smiling.

An hour the doorbell was heard in the house.

"That must be Emma." Marley said.

Jake was saddened, but he was a bit happy when he remembered he had to go the group home on Monday.

Tanisha let Emma in. Emma saw that Marley was smiling.

"Are you ready to go?" The red-head asked.

"Yes."

Marley then said, "Thank you for having me over."

Tanisha responed, "It was a pleasure having you over. We would be happy to have you over again."

Marley felt around for Jake and hugged him, "Thank you for inviting me and it was fun to hear you read. Maybe you can read more of Divergent to me, next week."

"I will. I'll take the book over on Monday." Jake responded.

Emma and Marley say bye and Emma guided Marley out.

Jake watched as Emma drove off.

"You have a crush on her." Tanisha said.

"I don't. I just want to be her friend." Jake responded nervously.

"Sweetie, you don't have to lie to me. Having crushes are normal. Marley seems like a sweet girl, but her situation isn't I don't how to say it. Just be careful about getting involved with someone who is different and requires a different kind of care." Tanisha said.

"I'll be careful. I promise Mom."

* * *

The next day, Marley was sitting in her room going over Braille sheet music. There was a knock on the door.

"Who is it ?"

It's me Ryder. We just got back from Westerville."

"How was the carnival?"

"It was fine, you should have gone. I brought you something." He said.

He placed a teddy bear in Marley's hands.

She felt it and smiled.

"What color is the bear?" She asked.

"It's pink."

"Thank you Ryder." She said.

"Easter Seals is planning a trip to Cedar Point soon. You should come with us. I know you get nervous in crowds with a lot of noises. But I'll guide you and protect you." The boy said.

"You are really sweet, but I don't want to burden people more." She said.

"Marley you wouldn't be a burden on me. At least think about the Cedar Point trip." Ryder said.

"Ok. I'll think about it. I went to dinner at Jake's last night." Marley said.

"What?" Ryder said with a shock.

"Yeah, he invited me and his mom picked us up. We had pizza and salad. He also read part of a book to me." She said.

"Marley you have be careful around guys like Jake. They are trouble all around."

"I know Jake has made mistakes, but he is sweet and I don't think he would hurt me." She said.

Ryder sighed and said, "Maybe he won't hurt you, but just be careful around him."

The teenage boy then put his arms around Marley.

The girl responded, "Thank you Ryder for looking for me. You, Artie, Emma, and Santana have taken care of me since I got here. But I need to sometimes get out in the world and experience things. Maybe I will go with you to Cedar Point."

Ryder smiled when he heard the last part. He was still annoyed with Jake having interest in Marley.


	4. Chapter 4

Sight Chapter 4

The next morning, Marley was sitting the passenger seat of Santana's car. The two were heading to Columbus for an appointment at Marley's opthamologist office. The teen was always somewhat annoyed with going to these appointments. She was listening to an audiobook on her iPod.

At one point she took her headphones out and then pushed the speak button on her watch which told her the time as being 9:00 am. She figured that they would be in Columbus within the next hour. She thought back to the past when she first went blind.

Her mother Millie Rose was a kind woman who was on the heavy side. Marley remembered how her mother was made fun of by people. Her father Bobby Rose was a kind of heavy but he weighed less than Millie. He was loving father. When Marley first lost her vision, they debated about whether to put Marley in the blind school. They ended up moving from Cincinnati to Columbus.

For two years, the family adjusted to Marley's disability. But tragedy struck. Marley's grandmother often had the girl spends weekends with her to give the parents a break. One weekend they were killed in a car accident while in Pennsylvania. Marley thought back to the times her parents played cards with her. The playing cards had braille on them. She also remembered her father giving her piggy back rides.

Santana spoke up, "We are at the clinic."

She waited as Santana parked the car and then got out and came over to her side. Santana helped her out of the car and guided Marley in.

They sat in the lobby.

After 10 minutes of waiting, the receptionist called out, "Dr. Holliday will see you now Marley.

She and Santana walked into the exam room of Dr. Holly Holliday.

"Hey Hot Stuff." Dr. Holliday said.

"Hi Dr. Holliday. I always love hearing your voice." Marley said with a smile.

"Let's do some basic exams." She said.

After 20 minutes of exams. Dr. Holliday took Marley and Santana into her office.

"I have some good news. Some of my colleagues have been reviewing your files and they are confident that we could put you on a list for a corneal transplant." The opthamologist said.

"What?" Marley said with shock.

"The tumor you had as a child didn't do a lot of damage to other parts of your eyes. The other parts are a bit healthy and we are confident that a corneal transplant will restore your vision. I will warn you it might not happen for a year or two. You will be put on the official list tomorrow. You will be sent a pager to keep on you at all times."

Marley was shaking a bit. She was in shock over the news.

Tears started to stream down her face.

Santana said, "Are you ok Marley?"

"I am. I was just thinking about my parents. They would be so happy at the chance for me to see again."

* * *

In Lima, lunchtime was approaching at McKinley High. Jake was in Mrs. Hagberg's home economics class. The class assignment was cupcakes. He had just pulled his out and was frosting.

Mrs. Hagberg was going around the class looking at her student's work.

"It looks like you did well Jake."

He smiled at her and said, "Mrs. Hagberg is it ok if I store my cupcakes in the storage closet. I'm planning to take them over to someone after school."

"I thought you would want to eat them at lunch like everyone else." The teacher said.

Well the person I want to share them with doesn't come to school here." Jake said.

"Oh ok sweetie." Mrs. Hagberg said.

After home-economics, Jake went to his Spanish class and then he headed into the cafeteria. He got his tray and was eating by himself. He didn't have many close friends at McKinley. Since his arrest, he learned to avoid the trouble crowds of McKinley.

He was surprised when Artie rolled up to his table and asked, "Mind if you I join you."

"Umm no."

Artie placed his tray on the table and wheeled in close to it.

Artie said, "I usually eat lunch with Ryder. But he is planning on trying out for the track team, so he is sitting with some of them."

"I'm surprised you want to sit with me. You always seem scared of me." Jake said.

"I was scared. You always seemed like the type of guy that would throw me out of my chair. Since you have been helping out at the group home, I know you aren't that type of guy. Marley told me yesterday about how she ate dinner at your house on Saturday." Artie said.

"Yeah. It was fun having her over." Jake said.

"I was happy that Marley did that. She can be shy in a lot of situations. Ryder and I are always trying to get her to come on Easter Seals trips, but she is always afraid to." Artie said.

"Maybe I can change that." Jake said.

"Ryder has been trying a lot and he thinks that Marley might come with us to Cedar Point sometime soon." Artie said.

Jake asked, "Have Ryder and Marley dated or anything?"

"No. Ryder does have a crush on her, but Marley once said she was scared of dating people with sight. She fears that her blindness will be too much for others." Artie said.

Jake thought about Ryder. He had already figured that Ryder also had a crush on Marley. He knew Ryder would be his main competition. But since Marley feared dating, he wasn't too worried at this point.

* * *

The rest of the school day went by quickly. Jake arrived at the group home and saw Marley playing the piano and smiling widely.

He went over and said, "Hey it's me Jake."

"Hi Jake. How are you doing?"

"Good."

"Jake you should stay over for dinner. I'm going to a make a big announcement to everyone and even though you are a new friend, I want you be there." She said.

"Sure, I'll stay over." Jake said.

He then went about doing his duties.

Dinner time at the group home consisted of the residents sitting around two very long tables.

Jake took a seat next to Artie and Ryder. While Marley was sitting near Santana and a few female residents. Jake watched as Marley interacted with a young girl in a wheelchair. The girl looked to be around 8 years old.

Halfaway through dinner Emma got up and said, "Everyone Marley has something she would like to tell us.

Marley than stood up from where she was sitting and said, "As some of you know I went to my opthamologist appointment in Columbus today. Dr. Holliday and other doctors have reviewed me files and they are placing me on the list for a corneal transplant. I will see again."

Sounds of awes and cheers filled the dinning area. Jake felt as if he witnessed a miracle , even thought it had not happened yet. He was often pessimistic and never believed that good things could happen for good people. Now he was happy for Marley.

He watched as several other residents and group home workers went up and congratulated Marley on her good news. He decided to wait to approach Marley.

Ryder went over to her and said, 'I'm so happy for you. You deserve this more than anyone else."

Marley smiled, "I don't know if I deserve this. But I'm so happy. I remember how you told me how happy you were it when you walked on your prosthetic leg for the first time. I hope when I see with donor corneas, I might have the same feeling as you did Ryder."

Ryder smiled and took her into his arms and said, "You will. I promise you Marley that when the surgery happens, I'll be there for you and I'll take care of you."

She smiled and squeezed him tighter. Jake nearby saw that and he felt a bit jealous about Marley hugging Ryder tightly.

He decided to go over and talked to Marley.

"Hey Marley. Congratulations on the good news. My mom has always said that miracles happen. I never believed that, but now I do." Jake said.

"Thank you Jake. I'm glad you stayed over for dinner. Even though you are a new friend, I felt that you should be surprised like everyone else." Marley said.

She got out of Ryder's embrace and walk over to Jake's voice feeling for him. She then hugged him.

Jake hugged her back, he loved how her body felt against his. He then looked up and saw jealously on Ryder's face.

After a minute Marley got of Jake's embrace and said, "I better finish eating. Jake did you bring Divergent with you? Maybe you could read a chapter to me."

"I brought it with me." He said.

He saw that Ryder continued to have a jealous look on his face.

Ryder, Jake, and Artie went back to the table they were sitting at.

Ryder spoke up and said, "You be careful around Marley. I don't want you to hurt her."

Jake slightly slammed his fist, "I'm not planning to hurt Marley. She is just my friend and you shouldn't act like you own her."

Ryder got up in anger and left the table.

* * *

After dinner, Jake went into Marley's bedroom. In his backpack, he also had a plastic container that held the cupcakes he made at school.

"I have special treat in addition to the book. Hold out your hand Marley"

She did as commanded and Jake took out the plastic container and placed the cupcake in Marley's hand.

"Oh you are giving me dessert." She said.

"I made cupcakes today in my home-economics class." He said.

Marley then took a bit and chewed for a couple of minutes. She said, "They taste good."

Jake started to eat his cupcake. After the two finished, he saw a bit of frosting on below Marley's lower lip.

He leaned closer to her as they were sitting on the bed. "You have some frosting under your lip, he then leaned and kissed her.

The girl pulled out and was shocked. She had fear.

Jake quickly apologized, "I shouldn't have done that. I'm so sorry."

Marley calmed down and said, "It's ok, I'm just not used to that. Well I've never been kissed before."

"It's not ok. I shouldn't have forced you like that." He said.

"Jake it's ok."

She then placed her hands on the sides of his face and then leaned and kissed him.

Jake kissed her back and they stopped after a couple of minutes.

He said, "For a newbie, you're not a bad kisser.


	5. Chapter 5

Sight Chapter 5

After the kiss, Jake read to Marley for awhile. Since the kisses, Marley began to worry and wonder.

Marley said, "Should we start dating or something? I've never dated anyone before. I sense your feelings for me."

"I don't want to pressure you into dating, if we do date we could take things slow." Jake said.

"Yeah, we can go slow. I'm blind and sometimes it can be too much for other people. I feel like a burden at times. I want to see again so badly and now I might have the chance. Jake are you sure you want to date someone who is blind?" She asked.

"I'm sure. I know it won't be easy. We can work around certain things." Jake said as he put his hand on Marley's cheek.

"I guess it is official." Marley said.

* * *

The next day at McKinley, Jake was grabbing books out of his locker when Ryder came up to him.

"Marley told me that you two are dating." Ryder said.

"We are and it's none of your business. Your act about controlling Marley is getting old. She can take care of herself." Jake said angrily.

"She can't take care of herself. She is worse off than me and Artie." Ryder said.

"If you really cared about Marley, you would believe in her." Jake said before storming off.

At lunch time, he was approached by Artie.

"Please don't tell me off for dating Marley. I already have to deal with Ryder." He said.

The wheelchair bound boy said, "I'm not upset at all. You and Marley have the right to date each other. I care about her and please don't hurt her."

"I won't hurt her. I know you are a good friend at least you don't act like own Marley like Ryder does." Jake said.

"Ryder has been through a lot in his life. He lost his parents in the accident that took his leg. He feels a bond with Marley because she lost her parents too." Artie said.

"I get that he has been through a lot. But that doesn't give him the right to try and own Marley" Jake said.

Artie said, "It doesn't, but I still kind of think Ryder means well"

….

Santana dropped off Marley in front of the Evergreens Nursing Home. It was her day to visit her grandmother Abigail Rose. Abigail had suffered a stroke that paralyzed her on the left side and left in a wheelchair. Marley guided herself into the nursing home. She knew the layout of the building well and most of the signs were in braille. She found her grandmother's room.

She said aloud, "Hi Grandma, it's me."

Abigail was laying in bed and said, "Hi sweetheart, I'm in bed today."

Marley with her cane tapped her way to the beside and leaned down and hugged her grandmother.

"Oh my you are getting prettier every time I see you. I wish you could see your beauty." Abigail said.

"I might be able to soon. Some doctors have put me on a list for a corneal transplant." Marley responded.

Her grandmother then slowly started to cry.

"Grandma, I hear your tears. Please don't cry. This is happy news." She said.

"I know it is sweetheart. I'm just glad that you are getting a break in life. You have been through so much." She said.

Marley then took a seat near the bedside and folded up her cane.

"I have some other good news." Marley said.

"What is it?"

"I have a boyfriend." Marley said with a smile.

"A boyfriend. Well I'm not surprised that a little dish like you would win over some boy's heart" Abigail teased.

"His name is Jake Puckerman. He is my same age and he has been volunteering at the group home. He is so sweet and he reads to me from books."

"I'm glad he is treating you well. Maybe you can bring him over on Saturday for the picnic." Abigail said.

"I'll ask him."

Marley and Abigail spent the next couple of hours talking and Abigail read to Marley excerpts from books.

…

Jake arrived at the group home for his service hours. He knew Marley would be at her vocal lessons with Santana's friend Rachel Berry. He checked in with Emma and she gave him a list of tasks that needed to be done in the garage.

He went into the garage and started doing the tasks. A couple of hours later, Marley arrived back at the group home and met up with Jake in the rec room.

"Jake are you busy on Saturday?" She asked.

"No." He responded.

"I told my Grandma about you today and she wants to meet you. There is going to be a picnic at the nursing home on Saturday. Would you like to come?" She asked.

"Yeah sure." Jake said even though he was a bit nervous.

…..

Saturday came. Jake took a bus to the group home and from there Emma drove him and Marley to the nursing home. Jake and Marley went to the courtyard area behind the nursing home. Several men were grilling hamburgers, hot dogs, and steaks on grills. Marley enjoyed the smells.

Marley told Jake, "My grandmother told me she would be a wearing a pink blouse and a sun hat."

Jake then scanned through the people and found Marley's grandmother.

"I see her." He said.

As they were walking to the elderly woman in the wheelchair, Jake noticed a look of disbelief on her face. He immediately sensed that the elderly woman had issues with skin color. Jake had been prepared by his mother from an early age to deal with racism. He had dealt with racism and prejudice from various people. Some black people disliked him because he was half white.

Abigail said, "Hi Marley."

"Grandma this is Jake Puckerman." Marley said in response

Jake noticed the dirty looks on the older woman's face and he decided to do his best to be polite, "Hello Mrs. Rose."

He bent down a bit and held out his hand towards the woman. She didn't shake it.

Abigail said, "Why don't you two sit down?"

Jake guided Marley to a bench at one of the picnic tables.

A nursing home orderly pushed Abigail closer to the table.

Jake saw Marley smiling. She had told him about the close relationship with her grandmother.

Marley and Abigail talked about different things and whenever Marley tried to have Jake included in the conversations, but Abigail would change the subject or do other things to keep the boy out of the conversations.

Lunch was served and Jake fixed a plate for Marley. The picnic came to an end and Marley said bye to her grandmother and Jake again saw the dirty looks Abigail was directing towards him. Again he was polite and said, "It was nice to meet you Mrs. Rose."

Emma picked up the two teens and they went back to the group home. In Marley's room, the two were sitting on her bed.

Marley said, "I'm sorry that my grandma kept leaving you out of the conversations. She just likes talking with me."

Jake decided to tell Marley about the dirty looks and his suspicions that her grandmother had a racist attitude.

"Marley. I need to tell you something, your grandmother kept giving me dirty looks. I think she dislikes me because of my skin color." He said.

Marley was a bit shocked and she stayed quiet for several minutes.

"Are you sure Jake? My grandma is a sweet woman." She said.

"I'm sure. I'm sorry that I had to tell you that. But I've always sensed when people have racist attitudes. Maybe I'm wrong at times. I still don't think your grandma is ok with us dating. My mom experienced a lot stuff when she was dating my dad." Jake said.

Marley said, "Next time I visit my grandmother. I'll ask her if she has issues with you because of your skin color. I'm sorry Jake, I should be better prepared in case others don't like our relationship because your skin color or maybe because of my blindness."

"We will be ok." Jake said as he hugged Marley.


	6. Chapter 6

Sight Chapter 6

Two days had past since the picnic at the nursing home. Marley and Jake had spent the previous day trying to think of ways to get her grandmother to be open to the idea of their relationship. Jake enlisted the help of him mom Tanisha. Tanisha thought about visiting Marley's grandmother, but decided to wait the situation out.

It was now Monday morning, Marley woke up in her room at the group home. She reached onto her night stand and pushed the voice button on her alarm clock which spoke out in a robotic tone the time which was 6:30 a.m. She got out of bed and went into the bathroom and showered. She came out and dressed herself and then did her hair. She gathered her school books and other materials and went into the rec room to await Santana who was her main teacher.

Ten minutes later, Emma came into the rec room and said, "Marley, Santana just called she won't be able to make it. Brittany is in labor."

A wide smile formed on Marley's face. Brittany was Santana's wife. Marley had also become close friends with Brittany through Santana. She was excited when Brittany and Santana announced they were expecting their first child.

"I hope Brittany and the baby will be ok." Marley said.

Emma responded, "I'm sure they will sweetie. Brittany has not had any problems during her pregnancy. Anyway I'll be taking over the schooling duties for today."

Emma then assisted Marley for the next few hours with school work. Around noon, Emma's cell phone went off.

She answered it, "Hello."

"Hi Emma, it's me Santana. Brittany and I have a beautiful baby girl. We named her Christina" Santana said.

"Congratulations to you and Brittany." Emma said.

"Thank you. Tell Marley about the baby and you two should visit tonight." Santana.

"Sure we will." Emma said.

Emma hung up and told Marley that everything went well for Brittany and the baby.

* * *

It was almost 6 pm when Emma and Marley arrived at Lima General Hospital. Emma guided Marley into Brittany's hospital room. Santana was sitting at Brittany's bedside. Brittany was in bed holding the baby girl who was wrapped in a light pink blanket.

"Hey you two. Thanks for coming." Santana said to Marley and Emma.

Santana got up and hugged the two women. They then greeted Brittany who smiled proudly.

"Would you like to hold the baby Marley?" Brittany asked.

"Oh no, I'm not the right person to hold babies." She responded.

"Yes you are. You are kind girl." Santana said.

The brunette then took Marley's hand and said, "Here sit in this chair".

She then took the baby out of Brittany's arms.

"I'm going to put the baby's head on you right arm and then her body on your left arm." Santana said.

Marley was a bit nervous as she felt Santana placing the little creature in her arms. She felt some the baby's head and she felt something soft and she knew it was hair.

The baby settled in Marley's arms.

"She likes you." Brittany said.

"How do you know?" Marley asked.

She looks relaxed.

"What does Christina look like?" Marley asked.

"She has light brown hair, do you feel her hair?" Santana said.

"I feel it on my arm. It is very soft" Marley said with a smile.

"Her eyes are blueish-grayish but that will probably change over time." Santana said.

"She feels beautiful. I'm glad that I'm on the list for a corneal transplant. Maybe I will be a mom someday. If I can see I'll be in the right place to be a mom." Marley said.

"Even if you weren't on the list for a corneal transplant, that wouldn't mean that you can't be a mom. Many blind women raise families." Emma said.

"I know. But I just would want to be a whole for the sake of a child. I hope get my sight back that way I can do more things including seeing this little girl". Marley said.

* * *

Jake was sitting on the steps of the group home awaiting Emma and Marley's arrival. When he arrived there earlier in the evening, Artie told him about Santana's baby and how Marley and Emma went to visit the new family in the hospital.

Emma's car eventually pulled up. They got out and Jake said, "Hey Marley."

"Hey Jake" She said before tip toeing up to kiss him on the lips.

"Let's go into my room." Marley said.

They went in and Marley told Jake about her experience of holding Santana and Brittany's baby.

"Do you want kids Jake?" Marley said.

Jake got a bit nervous and said, "I don't know. I don't know if I could be a good dad since I didn't have a dad when I was growing up." He said.

Marley said, "I think you are good person and I'm sure you would be a great dad."

"Maybe I would be a good dad." He said.

* * *

Jake was walking home, when he saw a black car pull up the curb. Kevin Adams got out of the car. Kevin was a former friend of Jake's. The two had gotten into trouble in the past for different things.

"What do you want Kevin?" Jake said.

"Well, nice to see you too Jakie boy. I heard you got busted for car vandalism and are doing community service at that group home for crippled kids." Keving said.

"Don't call them crippled." Jake said.

"I see you are trying to be a nice guy. Me and the crew are planning to rob some houses soon. You should come with us." Kevin said.

"My days of law breaking are over." Jake said as he walked away.

"They probably aren't over. You will be probably want in on easy money sooner or later." Kevin said.


	7. Chapter 7

Sight Chapter 7

Over the next week, Jake continued on with his community service and spending time with Marley. He and Marley got permission to go to a movie. Jake worried about taking Marley to a movie, but she assured him that she always did her best to enjoy movies without sight. Valentine's Day was approaching. Jake wanted to get a Marley a special gift, something like pricey jewelry. But he didn't have money for such gift. He thought about asking his mom to borrow money, but he didn't want to do that.

His mind then drifted towards Kevin and the offers. He sent Kevin a text message about possibly tagging along during one of the house break ins. Kevin texted him back and told Jake to meet him outside the Breadstix parking lot. Jake walked to the restaurant and waited until he saw Kevin's car pull up. Kevin rolled down the window and told Jake to get in.

"I figured that your law breaking days weren't over." Kevin said with a smirk.

"I need some cash ok. Maybe one break in will be enough to get stuff to pawn." Jake said.

"Maybe, but about we make a deal. You come with us on at least three break ins". Kevin said.

"One." Jake pleaded.

"No. Three, we need to get a lot of stuff to pawn or sell online. I control most of the profits." Kevin said.

Jake then agreed to go with the crew on three break ins. The first break in was two days later. The crew had been watching an old woman's house for awhile. They waited one night when she was gone to break in. They took jewelry, a stereo, and a computer.

* * *

It was afternoon at the group home. Marley had finished up her school work and was sitting on the front porch awaiting the arrival of the other residents. Ryder and Artie got off the bus from McKinley and they saw Marley waiting for them on the porch. Ryder still had a crush on Marley even though she was dating Jake.

He walked onto the porch and sat next to her.

"Ryder?" She said.

"How did you know?" He asked.

"I recognized that cologne you use. Artie told me about it." She said.

Ryder smiled at Marley knowing his smell.

He asked her, "We are going up to Cedar Point on Saturday. The whole house is going and Emma said that you haven't decided."

"I'm going out with Jake next Saturday. We are spending the day together and having dinner. He will bring me here around the time everyone should be getting back from Cedar Point." Marley said.

Ryder was disappointed.

* * *

Saturday came. Jake drove his mom's car to the group home and picked up Marley before everyone went to Cedar Point. They spent the day hanging out at a park, listening to music.

Around 2 pm, Tanisha called from the diner she worked at and said that she was going to work extra hours and that she wouldn't be able to eat dinner with Jake and Marley.

It was at 3 pm when Jake got a text from Kevin that read:

"_I have decided that we are going to break into that group home that you have doing your community service at."_

Jake texted back "Why?

Kevin responded, _"I know that all the cripples and their care takers are gone for the day. Damon managed to disable the alarm system awhile ago. Our plan is break in around 6 pm."_

Jake was angered by Kevin's plan. He was already disgusted with himself for being involved in a break in. But the thought of the group home being broken into and things stolen from it bothered him mostly because it was Marley's home.

The teen paced around while Marley was listening to a movie in the living room.

He decided to come up with a plan to try and prevent the break in. He knew he would have to bring Marley along.

He decided to come up with his lies to get him and Marley to the group home. He told Marley that Emma had given him keys and the alarm code so he could do some cleaning.

They got in the car at 5:30 and headed to the group. Jake guided Marley to her room and looked at his watch which read 5:47.

He said, "Marley stay here, I need to go check some stuff."

He hid in one of the storage closets and he heard the crew enter.

He confronted Kevin right away and said, "I'm not going to let you guys do this. It's bad enough we have broken into normal people's homes, we shouldn't break in and rob people in need."

"Oh look it likes Jakie has a conscious." Kevin teased.

Kevin then punched Jake in the stomach and Jake screamed in pain and then hit Kevin back.

They started punching each other. The crew just watched them fight and then Jake heard Marley's voice, "Jake, what is going on?"

He backed away from his fight with Kevin and saw Marley walking down the hall towards the commotion. He saw panic in her eyes.

"Marley get out of here." Jake said.

Kevin wiped blood from his nose and said, "It looks like you have a cripple girlfriend who can't see. No wonder you didn't want us rob this place."

"Jake who is that?" Marley said.

Jake ran over to her and said, "Marley go to your room."

Kevin then said, "Why don't you introduce your girlfriend to us?"

Kevin then walked up to the couple.

"Who are you?" Marley asked.

"He's no one." Jake said.

"I'm Kevin, an old friend of Jake's. We love causing trouble and we are going to rob this place. Jake is in it too."

Marley said, "No that can't be true Jake. Please tell me it's not true."

Jake said, "Marley I can explain."

Marley then walked away as tears streamed down her face.

The crew then left the group home.

Jake tried to talking to Marley but she locked herself in her room.

The teen then did the difficult thing by contacting the police. The police arrived. He told them everything about Kevin and the break ins. He confessed to be involved in breaking into the old woman's home.

* * *

Jake was sentenced by the court to spend one year in a juvenile detention center. He faced his punishment like a man. Will visited him once.

"Jake, I'm disappointed that you broke your probation. But I give you credit for confessing to things." Will said.

With tears in his eyes, the teen said, "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I hurt you, Emma, Marley, and others."

Will hugged the teen and said, "I know you are."

Jake then asked to go back to his cell."

* * *

Six months had passed. In that Marley was depressed and bitter over Jake. Ryder did his best to comfort her and cheer her up. But nothing worked.

It was early one morning when Marley was lying in bed. She had not slept and she thought about Jake. She liked the silence of the group home in the early morning hours. Then there was a beeping sound. It took her couple of minutes to figure out what the beeping was.

She then remembered that it was the pager she had been given by the transplant doctors.

She was going to get her transplant. Emma had been on the overnight shift and Marley raced to Emma. The red head smiled and almost cried. Marley then went to Ryder and Artie's room and told Ryder to get ready. She had remembered the promise he made to her to be there for her during the transplant.

Emma, Ryder, and Marley arrived at the hospital. Marley was taken to a prep room where she changed into a gown and nurses and doctors began discussing the surgery and prepping her.

Before she was taken into the OR, Ryder said, "I love you Marley. You are beautiful."

Marley said with tears in her eyes, "I love you too. You have been so good to me."

A few moments later Marley was taken into the OR.

Emma and Ryder paced in the waiting lobby for several hours.

The surgeon finally came out and approached the two, "The transplant went well. Marley is resting. She will have bandages on her eyes for five days."

* * *

Ryder had made good on his promise to help Marley with her recovery. Two days after the surgery, he helped Marley into a wheelchair and wheeled her around. He took her out to the hospital courtyard.

Two round bandages were place on each eye and a loop of bandages covered them. The bandages bothered Marley a bit.

"It feels good to be out here." She said.

"Soon you be able to see what is out here." Ryder said.

"I know. I'm excited. I'm more excited to see your face." She said.

Ryder was a bit surprised and he said, "You are?"

"Of course I am. I can finally see your kind face. I'm also excited to see my grandma's face again and then Emma's and Santana's." Marley said.

"Have you thought about Jake?" Ryder asked.

"Yeah I have. During the time I was with Jake, we never took any pictures together. I don't want to know what he looks like. I don't want to see him." Marley said

Ryder was surprised by what Marley was saying.

Marley deep down wished she could see Jake's face someday, but she still had anger towards him.

* * *

The day came for the bandages to be removed. Emma, Santana, Ryder, and Abigail were in the room. The doctor came in and said, "I'm going to remove your bandages. Now, Marley your vision will be a bit blurred at first."

Marley nodded.

The doctor then slowly took off the bandages. It took Marley's eyes awhile to adjust to some of the light and to get used to being bandage free.

She squinted a bit and then looked around the room. Despite the blurriness, she recognized faces based on the descriptions she had been told about Santana, Emma, Abigail, and Ryder.

They all smiled as Marley looked at them and smiled as she mentioned Emma's red hair, Santana's tan skin, and Ryder's hair.

* * *

It was mid day at the juvenile center. Jake was having lunch.

One of the guards said, "Mail call."

He then walked around handing out letters to inmates.

"Hey Puckerman, here's one for you."

Jake took the envelope and saw that the return addressee was W. Schuester.

He opened it and it read

"_Dear Jake,_

_I didn't know whether to write or call you. But I decided this was the best way to contact you. Marley had a corneal transplant several days ago. Emma says she is doing well. Emma didn't want me to contact you about this. She is still angry with you. But I felt that deserved to know about Marley. I hope you are doing well._

_Sincerely, _

_Will_

Tears streamed down Jake's eyes. He was happy that Marley received her miracle. But he hated that he wasn't with her.


	8. Chapter 8

Sight Chapter 8

Marley returned to the group home to recover a bit. Her vision slowly improved. She wore sunglasses at times because brightness bothered her at times. She enjoyed seeing the faces of the other residents at the group home. The doctors and therapists were working with her to help her learn to see the world again. She would also have to learn to read print. A few weeks after being at the group home, she moved into Brittany and Santana's home.

Brittany and Santana had recently become licensed foster parents. Their daughter Christina was now 7 months old and Marley enjoyed being around the baby. Brittany taught Marley how to care for the baby. In the evenings, Santana would work with Marley on literacy.

* * *

Jake was lead into the visiting area of the juvenile center. His mother was seated at a table. She had a brown paper bag with her.

"Hi Jake." She said with a smile.

"Hey mom."

"I brought you some candy and bagged cheddar popcorn. I know you must be missing this stuff." She said.

"You didn't have to bring that stuff Mom. I don't deserve it." Jake said.

"Jake it's ok. I'm not angry with you anymore. I'm proud of you. You owned up to the things you did. Many people never own up to their mistakes. You need to forgive yourself for the past." Tanisha said.

"I can't. I can't forgive myself for hurting Marley and the group home. I just can't." Jake said with tears streaming down his face.

"You can." Tanisha said.

"Will wrote to me about a month ago. Marley had a corneal transplant." Jake said.

"Oh my that is amazing. She is sweet girl. She deserves that gift." Tanisha said.

Jake nodded in agreement as he wiped tears away.

Tanisha then said, "I have some possible good news for you. I've been talking with your lawyer, the judge and others and they are considering let you out two months early. But you would have to be on house arrest for two months to serve out the rest of your sentence"

Jake smiled a bit.

* * *

Ryder knocked on the door of the Lopez-Pierce home. Brittany with Christina at her hip answered the door.

"Hi Ryder" She said.

"Hi Brittany. How are you?" The boy asked.

"I'm doing well. Marley is up in her room." The blonde said.

Ryder walked up to Marley's bedroom and knocked, she smiled.

"Hey Ryder." She said as she turned off the TV. Since getting her vision back, Marley watched various movies, shows, and documentaries to aid her getting back to the land of sight.

"I bought a copy of Insurgent to read to you." Ryder said.

Marley smiled, she loved Ryder reading to her.

She said, "Hopefully someday, I will be able to read to you without having problems. I get frustrated at times when Santana tries to teach me."

Ryder said, "You don't have to rush yourself."

The boy then began reading the book. After a couple of chapters. He stopped. Marley then leaned in and kiss the boy. He kissed back but was surprised.

"I'm sorry" Marley said.

"Its ok." Ryder responded before pulling Marley closer and kissing her.

* * *

It was release day for Jake. The guards gave him street clothes to change into. Before he left the juvenile center, a tracking device was secured around his ankle. His mother drove him home. As they pulled up, he saw Artie near the driveway.

Tanisha said, "Your friend Artie wanted to see you."

As Jake got out of the car, Artie wheeled up to him and said, "It's good to see you Jake."

"You too Artie. I'm surprised that you want to see me. I thought you would be pissed about what I did." Jake said.

"I was mad for awhile. But I forgave you because you turned yourself in and did time. " Artie said.

Jake then picked up Artie out of his chair, Tanisha carried the wheelchair to the porch and Jake carried Artie up the steps and placed him in his wheelchair.

Jake and Artie went into his room.

Jake stayed silent for several minutes before saying, "How is she?"

"Marley is doing good. She moved out of the group home. She is living with Santana and Brittany now. She is learning to see the world again and learning to read." Artie said.

"That's good." Jake said.

"After your house arrest is up. You should go see her." Artie said.

" I don't think she would want to see me. I hurt her and everyone at the group home, by letting Kevin and the crew go over there. I should have called the cops right away when Kevin told me they were planning to rob the group home." Jake said.

"You should have done that. But you did keep them from stealing from the home. That counts for something." Artie said.

"I don't know if it does." Jake said.

* * *

For the next two months, Jake served his home arrest. He fixed up things around the house and painted one of the rooms. The ankle tracking monitor was removed and Jake was now free to go anywhere. He considered getting his GED, but he decided to go back to McKinley.

For the first week, he saw some of looks and heard some of the whispers from the other students. He did his best to ignore that stuff. He sometimes hung out with Artie. He saw Ryder around school, but didn't speak to him.

It was Friday afternoon and school had let out. Jake had walked into courtyard and someone caught his eye.

It was Marley.

Emotion came over Jake. He watched her from afar. She was sitting on a bench. He then saw Ryder walking towards her and when the two got close they kissed each other.

Jake walked away quickly and he was upset over what he saw.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Jake was sad over seeing Ryder and Marley together. He decided to try focusing on other things. He visited Will at the probation office several days later.

"Hi, Jake come in and have a seat?" Will said.

"Thank you for meeting with me. I'm sorry.." Jake said before Will motioned him to stop speaking.

"You don't need to apologize to me anymore. I forgave you." Will said.

"Thank you for forgiving me Will. I just wished others would forgive me. Like Emma and Marley. You and Artie forgiving me has kind of helped me forgive myself." Jake said.

"I'm glad it has helped a bit. I keep trying to talk to Emma about you, but she isn't at the point where she wants to forgive you. Don't give up on Emma or Marley, they might come around. You haven't tried to see Marley?" Will said.

"I did see her the other day. She was at McKinley meeting up with Ryder. She didn't see me. We never took any pictures together when we dated. She has no idea what I look like. " Jake said.

"Emma told me Marley was dating Ryder." I'm sorry Jake." Wills said.

"Maybe she is better off with him." Jake said.

"You don't know that. Don't sell yourself short. Sure you have made mistakes, but you have owned up to them." Will said.

Jake decided to change the subject a bit and asked, "Do you know about any volunteering opportunities? I want to get back into volunteering again. I felt good about myself when I was volunteering at the group home."

"I can look here at my contact lists and make some calls." Will said.

Will then looked made a few calls.

After one call, Will hung up and said, "There is a volunteering opportunity at the library. They have literacy program and they need volunteers to read with people who have reading difficulties. Do you think you could do this?"

Jake thought for a few moments. During his time in juvie, he had read many books and he felt his reading had improved.

He looked at Will and said, "Yes."

* * *

A week later, Jake arrived at the Lima Public Library east branch. A tall woman with greying hair and approached him.

The woman said, "I'm Karen Bryant. You must be Jake Puckerman."

"Yes I am. Good to meet you." The teen responded.

She then said loudly, "Everyone this is Jake Puckerman a new volunteer here."

Jake then looked at the crowd who greeted him hellos and then he saw Marley.

Marley was shocked to see Jake. She had never planned to see what he looked like, but now she was seeing him. She remembered how he felt and now she saw the image of the texture.

She got up from one of the tables and walked away.

Jake decided to go after her. He followed her to the lobby.

"Marley I'm sorry" He said.

Marley turned to him with tears in her eyes.

"You are so handsome. I remember how you said that your mom's skin color was like dark chocolate and you were a bit lighter than her. I remember you telling me about your short hair." She said wiping tears away.

"I remember telling you a lot of that". Jake said.

He then said, "I'm so sorry I hurt you and everyone at the group home. Will wrote me a letter several months ago telling me about the corneal transplant. I'm happy for you. I'm glad you can this world again." Jake said.

Marley then walked away from Jake.

* * *

A few days later, Jake went back to Will's office.

"You knew Marley was going to be at that library didn't you?" Jake said.

Will said, "I knew. I thought it might both of you, to see each other again and talk. I apologize if I caused any problems."

"We did talk" Jake said.

"How did it go?"

"I apologized to her. She told me that I was handsome. I told her I was happy about her transplant and she walked away." Jake said.

"At least you apologized to her. It's up to her to accept the apology." Will said.


End file.
